MEMPHIS – Visitors are accustomed to hearing the blues in Memphis, but it usually doesn't extend to basketball.

"This is the toughest stretch for us," Memphis coach Josh Pastner said. "Other than the beginning of the season, when I over scheduled for this youthful team we have. Looking back on it, I definitely over scheduled, but you live and learn on that."

The Tigers play to a crowd with annual Final Four aspirations, and its restlessness shows in the attendance numbers at the FedEx Forum, which have been decreasing as they've struggled, like UConn. A year ago Memphis, which had dominated Conference-USA, and UConn, the perennial Big East heavyweight, looked like the most promising rivalry in the American Athletic Conference.

But as they meet for the first time this season Thursday at 9 p.m., all they are fighting for is fifth place in the league and a bye in the AAC Tournament.

"They've lost a lot," Pastner said Wednesday. "And we've lost a lot. We're a little younger than they are. They're a team that could go on and win eight in a row, nine in a row, 10 in a row and go into the NCAA Tournament as could we, if we're healthy."

In his relatively new role as American Athletic Conference associate commissioner for men's basketball, Dan Leibovitz has traveled across the league's vast footprint, experiencing all of the weather-related travel snafus.

One stop that has stayed with him was the Cincinnati-UConn game at the XL...

(DOM AMORE)

Much like UConn, Memphis gave itself a challenging nonconference schedule, and losses to Wichita State, Baylor, Stephen F. Austin, Oklahoma State and Gonzaga, put them in a hole. But the Tigers, like UConn, have not exactly lit up the AAC, either.

Memphis has won 24 or more nine years in a row, but at 15-10, 7-5 in the AAC, it will have to go some to get there this season. The first step is getting top player Austin Nichols back from a sprained ankle. Nichols, a sophomore, averages 13.3 points and 6.1 rebounds, and he leads the AAC in blocked shots with 77 in 23 games, a better percentage than UConn's Amida Brimah, who has 75 in 24 games.

Nichols, 6 feet 8, injured himself late in a 61-60 loss to Temple, but 6-9 Shaq Goodwin, Memphis' other experienced big man, has come on strong in recent games and Paster is eager to get both on the floor together again. Nichols did not practice Tuesday, but if he tells Pastner he can play against UConn, he will, Pastner said.

"We're going to prepare for Nichols being in there," UConn coach Kevin Ollie said. "They have two bigs playing well, when Nichols is out there, but they get in transition. [Kedren] Johnson and [D'Mar] Cunningham is a blur when he gets in the game, he adds a dimension for them. They pose a challenge from the guards, but it definitely starts from the inside out with them."

UConn beat Memphis three times last season, eliminating the host Tigers from the AAC Tournament. The Huskies did a good job on Goodwin in each of those games, but UConn's personnel is different now.

"I'm confident in us matching up with them, especially in the frontcourt," Goodwin said. "We know Brimah is a great shot-blocker, and he alters a lot of shots in the paint. We understand you have to attack a shot-blocker's chin, and chest."

If Nichols cannot play, or is not at full speed, the Huskies would have a better chance to use their smaller lineup, with 6-7 Daniel Hamilton at power forward and three guards, Ryan Boatright, the league's top scorer, Terrence Samuel and Rodney Purvis.

"Boatright's a pro. Boatright's really good and he single-handedly can win games," Pastner said. "So we've got to do a great job on him. I wish he were the only good player on the team, but he's not. They've got Hamilton, who is going to be really good, Purvis, who can play, Samuel can create a lot, [Omar] Calhoun, and obviously Brimah — they've got really good talent."

That's how important Nichols could be to this game; he could force UConn to move away from its best look. Pastner expects this to be an offensive game, the winning team needing to score in the 70s, territory UConn has not visited much this season.

"We just have to play our type of basketball, pay more attention to details and play with a little but more consistency, play for 40 minutes, that's pretty much the recipe to beat any team. Hopefully we can get back to those basics," Ollie said.

For UConn (14-10, 7-5), the season after the championship has been one of fits and starts. It looked as if the Huskies turned a corner when they beat Tulsa a week ago, but they were beaten up, physically and mentally, by first-place Southern Methodist in Dallas Saturday.

"It's irritating,it's frustrating," Boatright said. "But it's my job as the leader, as the captain of this team to stay with it, stay positive and I believe in these guys."

Both Memphis and UConn face a tough final six games as they fight for one of the five first-round byes in the AAC Tournament. UConn and Memphis play each other twice. Memphis also plays Tulsa, SMU and Cincinnati. UConn still has SMU and Temple in addition to the games with Memphis.